Chapter 79: Setbacks
“Yixin…”
Feng Qi stared blankly at Wen Ning’an. At this moment, Yu Qianshou was feeding the semi-conscious Wen Ning’an medicine. His face was pale, his eyes were empty, and the dark medicinal liquid slowly flowed from the corner of his mouth, setting off his pale face and neck.
The bedsheets had already been stained red. It was clear that he was bleeding uncontrollably from below.
Feng Qi stood at the side, suddenly stunned. The fear in his heart was gradually magnified, and he just stood there, unable to move.
“Huai… Huaitian…”
Wen Ning’an subconsciously called out in a low voice. Feng Qi immediately came back to his senses and rushed to the bedside, holding him tightly.
Yu Qianshou continued to feed him the medicine.
Seeing that Feng Qi was on the verge of collapse, he tried to distract him by talking to him. “Your Majesty, the medicine I’m giving His Highness is of two kinds, one strong and one gentle. One is to force him to vomit out the poison, and the other is to suppress the qi in his body.”
Feng Qi only said with a trembling voice, “You must save Yixin…”
“Cough, cough—”
Wen Ning’an suddenly convulsed and spat out black blood. He vomited uncontrollably, and the dark blood quickly stained the white cloth in Yu Qianshou’s hand.
At least some of the poison has been cleared… If any more is cleared, he will die! Next was to induce labor. Everything could only depend on fate…
Yu Qianshou took a slight breath and hurriedly fed him a few more mouthfuls of medicine to replenish his qi and suppress the evil poison in his body.
Wen Ning’an’s mind cleared slightly. He only felt the stinging pain all over his body gradually ease, but the next moment, it was all concentrated in his stomach, and the pain was several times worse than before! It was as if his body were about to explode, to be torn apart. Besides pain, there was only pain.
Seeing the person in his arms suddenly hold his breath and scream, Feng Qi was startled.
Wen Ning’an began to struggle uncontrollably, his legs kicking everywhere. Feng Qi immediately held him tighter, his hands wrapped firmly around his chest, restraining him.
“Yixin, don’t be afraid… Yixin, I’m here… I’m here…”
Yu Qianshou shouted, “Where is the labor-inducing medicine!”
After drinking a few bowls of the labor-inducing medicine, Wen Ning’an seemed to be in even more pain, the pain below him as if he were being split in two. His face was covered in tears, and his whole body was soaked in sweat. His dark hair was sticky and plastered to his neck and cheeks.
Wen Ning’an’s hands gripped the bedsheets tightly, his knuckles already white. In a daze, he understood that Long’er was about to come out… Long’er…
“Your Majesty, let His Highness lie flat. The child is about to come out.” Feng Qi had no choice but to gently lay him down, while he himself knelt by the bed, holding his hand tightly.
Yu Qianshou said, “Your Highness, push, push again!”
“Push!”
But gradually, the sound of screaming and moaning slowly died down. In the end, Wen Ning’an’s body was limp, and he lay on the bed, exhausted, his eyes half-closed, with no strength left to even cry out.
“Your Highness!” Yu Qianshou’s eyes widened in rage. He said anxiously, “Your Highness, wake up! The child is about to come out! Just push a little more! Just a little more and it will be fine!”
If he faints like this, the child in his womb will become a stillborn! If a stillborn can’t be delivered, then both the child and Wen Ning’an will…
“Your Highness!”
Feng Qi held the limp and weak hand, his eyes gradually reddening.
“Yixin…”
“Yixin, don’t leave me… I’m begging you… wake up…”
Wen Ning’an’s face was ashen, and his whole body exuded a very, very bad aura, an aura that was enough to drive Feng Qi mad.
Yu Qianshou stared at him and, finally, gritting his teeth, he pressed his hands on his stomach, took a deep breath, and gathered his strength.
Then, he pressed down hard!
“Ahhhhhh—”
Wen Ning’an’s eyes rolled back, and like a fish on land struggling to die, he suddenly arched his back slightly and woke up.
The child had slipped down a little more. Yu Qianshou said sharply, “Push!”
“Ngh…”
Wen Ning’an had actually already lost his strength, but every time he was about to faint, Yu Qianshou would press hard on his stomach, making him faint and then wake up, wake up and then faint, almost on the verge of collapse. But at this moment, he had no extra strength to shout, just digging his nails into Feng Qi’s hand, drawing blood.
Feng Qi could no longer hold it back, and tears streamed down his face. This was the first time he, a high and mighty emperor, had cried in front of so many people.
“Yixin…”
Feng Qi leaned against his ear and choked, saying softly, “You have to get through this, get through this… We said we would teach Long’er together. I’ll teach him martial arts, and you’ll teach him poetry. No, actually, you can also teach him martial arts. How about this, you’ll teach him to be well-versed in both literature and martial arts, and I’ll teach him how to win a wife… and then when Long’er grows up and ascends the throne, we’ll go and travel the mountains and waters. Wherever you want to go… I’ll go with you wherever you want to go… We’ll go to the desert, to the sea…”
In a daze, Wen Ning’an heard his voice, and his lips moved slightly. Feng Qi, who was leaning beside him, heard it clearly. He was saying “alright.”
Feng Qi raised his head slightly and kissed his lips.
“Yixin, I really love you so much… If anything happens to you, I don’t need to live anymore.”
“You promised me, get through this, get through this… We still have many years, many days to spend together.”
Wen Ning’an’s consciousness was hazy, his vision a white light. He had originally been in so much pain he wished he would just die. But hearing Feng Qi’s words, he felt a pull in his heart.
If he were to let go like this, he would not be resigned!
He still had many things to do with this man…
“Ah, ahhh… hah…”
Yu Qianshou said with admiration, “That’s right! Your Highness, push again! Almost there, almost there! I’m not lying to you. It’ll be fine in a moment!”
“Waaah—”
The sound of a baby’s cry suddenly sounded, and everyone immediately let out a sigh of relief. Wen Ning’an’s body also went limp. He felt that all his efforts had finally been worth it, and tears streamed down his face again.
And Qin Zhaohuang, at the side, watched this unprecedented way of delivering a baby, his whole body going limp. The other imperial physicians were so scared their faces turned pale. They felt that this method was too incredible, and too risky. But with Wen Ning’an’s body now, if they didn’t take this unconventional approach, he wouldn’t have been able to survive.
Wen Ning’an finally couldn’t hold it back and fainted.
Yu Qianshou handed the child to a wet nurse and gave Wen Ning’an first aid.
“Yu Qianshou! Yixin’s breathing is very weak…” Feng Qi had no mind to look at the child now, just holding Wen Ning’an in his arms and anxiously asking for help.
“Your Majesty, don’t panic. He is no longer in mortal danger.”
With that, Yu Qianshou asked the imperial physician for a set of silver needles. “Next, we just need to clear the remaining poison.”
Feng Qi held the ice-cold Wen Ning’an, feeling as if the person in his arms were… as if he were gone, lying limply in his arms, his breathing so weak it was almost imperceptible.
“Yixin, one is enough…”
He would never let Wen Ning’an suffer this kind of pain again… Feng Qi kissed his cheek. It was salty.
When Wen Ning’an slowly regained consciousness, he saw that he was being held by Feng Qi, a scene of warmth. There was still a dull ache from below, and the tendon in one of his hands had been cut and he couldn’t move it, but these were still within a tolerable range.
His clothes had been changed into clean ones. Xingxing and Liangliang were nestled between the two of them. Seeing him awake, Xingxing immediately licked his cheek.
Wen Ning’an scratched Xingxing’s chubby cheek with his index finger and smiled. “Were you scared?”
He was still very weak now and couldn’t make any large movements. His voice was also very soft, like a faint thread. But he was awake after all… Feng Qi also finally let out a sigh of relief.
“Wuu…” Xingxing buried its entire head in the crook of his neck and rubbed hard. Liangliang, at the side, also felt an itch and, with one decisive and effortless kick, sent Xingxing away and buried itself in his embrace.
Seeing Xingxing’s sad face, its eyes watery as it looked at him, Wen Ning’an also couldn’t bear it and smiled, holding it in his arms and stroking it.
“Xingxing is clearly the older brother. Why is he always being bullied?”
Watching him play with the two little ones, Feng Qi’s heart was filled with a warmth, as if he had regained something he had lost.
“Yixin, you scared us all.”
Wen Ning’an smiled. “Have you seen Long’er?”
“No.”
Wen Ning’an tapped his chest. “This heartless imperial father.”
Feng Qi shook his head. His entire heart had been on edge, so afraid that something would happen to Wen Ning’an. He had been watching over him, afraid that he wouldn’t wake up. How could he have had the mind to think of anything else?
The wet nurse later brought the child up. Feng Qi took him and gently placed him between himself and Wen Ning’an.
“Eek.” Feng Qi looked at his son’s wrinkled appearance and said with disgust, “So ugly. He didn’t inherit any of my Yixin’s good looks.”
Wen Ning’an smiled.
“Isn’t it because he inherited your good looks?” Wen Ning’an pointed to the small infant. “Look closely. His features are almost exactly the same as yours. His eyes, nose, lips… oh my, they’re all just like you.”
Feng Qi felt a tightness in his chest.
“Am I like this!”
Wen Ning’an chuckled softly.
Jokes aside, after looking closely, Feng Qi indeed found that the child’s features were carved from the same mold as his, and he couldn’t help but feel a little proud.
Wen Ning’an pouted. “It was clearly I who worked so hard to give birth to him, but in the end, he doesn’t resemble me in the slightest.”
“Oh my, my Yixin is jealous.”
Feng Qi poked Long’er’s nose. “Long’er, your daddy suffered a lot to bring you into this world. If you dare to disobey him or be bad to him in the future, your imperial father will break your legs.”
Wen Ning’an patted his shoulder. “The child isn’t even a month old, and you’re already threatening him! If he grows up to be as fierce as you, that would be terrible.”
“Fierce is good. That way, he can awe the world.”
Wen Ning’an looked at Long’er’s small, wrinkled face, then thought of aweing the world, and couldn’t help but laugh.
He was still weak now and not in good spirits. After just a few words, he was drowsy again and fell asleep in a daze.
Feng Qi reached out and gently stroked his forehead.
“Sleep…”
After he had fallen into a deep sleep, Feng Qi tucked him in and then stood up, saying to Wuying, who had been waiting in a corner of the room, “Speak. What have you found.”
At this moment, Feng Qi’s eyes were more terrifying and dangerous than ever before, indescribable even by a storm. As if a single glance from these eyes would put one in a situation of being sliced into a thousand pieces, a life worse than death.
